It has been more than three weeks since the Hawks lost Al Horford to an injury that required surgery, and a couple of things have become clear.
The Hawks are good enough to defeat struggling opponents without Horford, their All-Star center. But beating good teams, especially those with the size and aggressive scorers to exploit them inside, is a tougher task.
The 76ers were the latest quality opponent to overwhelm the Hawks. Philadelphia ran to a 98-87 victory Saturday night at Philips Arena, two days after Memphis routed the Hawks 96-77.
The Hawks are 3-8 in games against teams that had winning records entering Saturday. They are 1-4 against such teams since Horford’s injury and lost their first game with center Jason Collins (elbow) on the injury list.
“We just have to give more,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said. “We have to do more. We have to have more commitment.”
The Hawks cited their return from a five-game road trip to explain the flat effort against Memphis. They didn’t have that alibi against the Sixers, who erupted for 37 points in the second quarter to take control.
Big men Spencer Hawes and Niokla Vucevic hurt the Hawks inside while combining to score 29 points on 14-of-21 shooting. The Sixers scored 54 points in the paint as Josh Smith (seven blocked shots) was the only consistently effective Hawks defender at the rim.
The Hawks have their first losing streak since losing to Chicago and Miami on Jan. 3 and Jan. 5.
“It’s nothing but a two-game skid,” Smith said. “You are going to have little losing streaks like this, but it’s what you make out of it.”
The Hawks won’t get much of a chance to figure things out. They have seven more games this month against teams with winning records.
The Hawks are down to one healthy center, Zaza Pachulia, but said they will have to make do. They noted that they aren’t the only team left short-handed during this truncated, injury-marred NBA season.
With no quality reinforcements on the horizon, the Hawks had to take a pragmatic view.
“We have got to keep rolling with that we’ve got,” Hawks guard Joe Johnson said. “Somebody has got to step up and fill that void.”
Forward Ivan Johnson is making a case to be that guy. The rookie gave the Hawks a lift with 14 points and 13 rebounds in 25 minutes despite a size disadvantage while playing at center.
“We’ve got somebody down, but that doesn’t stop us from playing hard,” Johnson said after recording his first double-double.
Johnson scored six consecutive points in the first quarter to spark the Hawks’ stagnant offense. He had six points and eight of the Hawks’ 24 rebounds in the first half.
Drew replaced Pachulia with Johnson to begin the second half. Johnson again sparked the Hawks with his spirited play, scoring six points during an 10-2 run that cut Philadelphia’s lead to 70-58.
The Hawks couldn’t sustain it. After Johnson went to the bench, the Sixers scored the final seven points of the quarter to lead 81-62 entering the final period.
The Hawks trimmed the lead to 96-85 on Joe Johnson’s basket with 1:45 to go. But Philadelphia’s Louis Williams, a South Gwinnett High product, scored back-to-back baskets to turn back the Hawks.
The Sixers buried the Hawks in the second quarter. Former Norcross High star Jodie Meeks made a 3-pointer to start a 15-4 Philadelphia run that included five dunks and layups and three steals that led to scores.
“For some reason, everybody got in a ‘do it myself’ mentality in the second quarter,” Drew said. “Against a good team like Philadelphia, or any team really, you’ve got to do a better job taking care of the basketball.”
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